They're promoting the "Konoha threat" theory, and spouting nonsense about the Hidden

Chapter 226 The Fourth Hokage Shimura Danzo!

The Uchiha clan's secret gathering place, the Naka Shrine.

Several braziers illuminated the spacious area; this was a shrine that the Uchiha clan had passed down through generations since its founding.

It is precisely because of this history and tradition that the Uchiha clan always holds a meeting here to find solutions to problems whenever there is a major event.

With the Hokage position within reach, the Uchiha clan, following tradition, gathered here to discuss how to investigate the truth behind the Hatake Nao incident and defeat Shimura Danzo to obtain the Hokage position.

Just like with Danzo Shimura before him, Homura Uchiha also analyzed the significance of Hiruzen Sarutobi's decision to name Fugaku Uchiha and Danzo Shimura as candidates for Hokage.

That means stepping back and extricating yourself from the spot, then sitting high on the referee's bench and watching the two families fight each other.

Despite being extremely dissatisfied with Hiruzen Sarutobi's actions, Homura Uchiha was still captivated by the bone he had thrown out.

There was no other way; this opportunity was arguably the closest the Uchiha clan had ever come to the Hokage position since the founding of Konoha.

"Clan leader, Hatake Nao is already dead. Even the Impure World Reincarnation technique couldn't find the real culprit. How can you expect us to produce an investigation report that everyone can believe?"

Uchiha Yatsushiro, who was the same age as Uchiha Fugaku, expressed his dissatisfaction, believing that this was a trick by Sarutobi Hiruzen to deliberately make them fight against Shimura Danzo.

Logically speaking, to produce an investigation report that satisfies most of the villagers, it must have a certain degree of authenticity and substantial evidence; it cannot be based on mere words.

However, with Nao Hatake dead and even the Impure World Reincarnation technique unable to retrieve the killer's memories, asking them to find this level of evidence is nothing short of a pipe dream.

Moreover, it's not just them; even Danzo Shimura probably couldn't find such substantial evidence.

Therefore, the Uchiha clan, who were used to being suppressed by the village, had no choice but to suspect that this was a scheme by Hiruzen Sarutobi.

If he succeeds, he can use the opportunity of two tigers fighting to clear his name;

If they retreat, they can be brought out and used as a raft for Shimura Danzo, to show the successor of the Fourth Hokage a fair and just situation.

"I even suspect that even if we produce a detailed report, the village will reject it because it's not convincing enough... After all, anyone can tell how the village treats us."

"No, judging from the situation Hiruzen Sarutobi faced back then, he shouldn't have thought that way... His behavior at the time proved that he really didn't know who the murderer was, and even suspected that the murderer was us. That's why he used a retreat as a means of advancement, throwing out the Hokage position to make us compete with Danzo, and testing our reaction."

After careful consideration, Uchiha Homura refuted the conjecture put forward by Uchiha Hachimoku.

"Back at the Hokage Rock, Hiruzen Sarutobi swore an oath in front of so many people to help us become Hokage. Given how much he values ​​his reputation, he shouldn't go back on his word..."

"So, if we can produce a report this time, a report that surpasses Danzo Shimura's, then we will definitely have a chance to make Fugaku Hokage."

Clearly, despite being the clan leader for so many years, Uchiha Homura still hasn't grasped the essence of political games.

They actually had expectations of politicians' promises.

"I've already inquired about that in secret."

Fugaku Uchiha, one of the candidates for Hokage, finally spoke up and joined the conversation.

"According to private discussions among some ninja clans, they all believe that if Hiruzen Sarutobi is truly innocent, then Nao Hatake must have been manipulated. And the only genjutsu that could manipulate Nao Hatake at close range without being detected by the Hokage himself is genjutsu."

Fugaku Uchiha looked at everyone present and said in a low voice, "That is the Sharingan of our Uchiha clan."

"To be precise, it was the pair of Mangekyou Sharingan that appeared on the battlefield in the Land of Rain."

Upon hearing this, all the Uchiha present fell silent.

Their silence wasn't due to being misunderstood by the villagers, but rather because, even now, they still didn't know where the Mangekyou Sharingan that appeared on the battlefield of the Land of Rain came from.

Over the years, they have been investigating, from the list of clansmen who died in battle to clansmen who had disappeared in Uchiha history, they have investigated everything, but in the end they still could not find out the person's identity.

In the end, they could only come to one consensus: those Mangekyou Sharingan were very likely the clan treasures that Madara Uchiha took with him when he left Konoha.

After all, Madara Uchiha was the head of the Uchiha clan back then, and he could not only freely enter and leave the clan's treasury, but also delete and alter the clan's records afterward.

It's not impossible that someone might have hidden the Mangekyou Sharingan away before the battle at the Valley of the End, and now it's been unearthed.

Despite making this guess, they were powerless against those Mangekyou Sharingan. They couldn't even find any trace of them, so how could they possibly take them back?

How could the proud and arrogant Uchiha clan not feel uncomfortable when the ultimate power of their clan is in the hands of outsiders?

Seeing the dejected expressions on everyone's faces, Fugaku Uchiha remained silent for a moment before saying, "Of course, the point I want to make is not the Mangekyou Sharingan, but this hypnotic ability."

"Hypnotic abilities?"

"That's right, it's hypnotic ability. Nowadays, some ninja clans and villagers believe the Mangekyou Sharingan is highly suspicious. Since that's the case, why don't we just go with the flow and pinpoint the killer's ability to the hypnotic eye?"

Uchiha Fugaku, facing the gazes of the crowd, spoke eloquently.

"Hypnotic eyes? Isn't that our Sharingan?...Isn't shifting suspicion from that unknown Mangekyou Sharingan to our Uchiha clan even worse?"

Immediately, someone refuted Fugaku Uchiha's proposal.

"No, have you all forgotten? Our Sharingan isn't the only one in the ninja world renowned as the 'Hypnotic Eye'!"

"You mean...blood dragon eye?"

At Fugaku Uchiha's prompting, someone finally remembered the Blood Pond Clan, whom they had almost wiped out.

"That's right. As far as I know, the Blood Pond clan has already fled Hell Valley and is settling in Kirigakure under Hozuki Shingetsu's offer of amnesty... And I don't need to elaborate on Kirigakure's attitude towards Konoha, do I?"

"It's possible that Kakashi Hatake encountered Shingetsu Hozuki in the Land of Wind recently, and that Shingetsu used the Uzumaki clan's sealing techniques to secretly place a ninjutsu similar to a transcription seal on him. After returning to Konoha, he used a genjutsu on Nao Hatake, which is quite possible, isn't it?"

"Even if this argument isn't very logically sound, unless Shimura Danzo can produce conclusive evidence, this argument definitely outshines Shimura Danzo's, right?"

Finally, Fugaku Uchiha concluded:

"We don't need to produce a truly detailed investigation report; in fact, we can't produce one anyway. But as long as our report surpasses that of Shimura Danzo, we will win this battle for Hokage."

"Brilliant!"

After listening to what Fugaku Uchiha had said, people immediately applauded and praised him.

"The Mangekyou Sharingan that is rumored outside is ultimately just speculation. Unless they actually obtain that Mangekyou Sharingan, it's all just speculation... Compared to that Mangekyou Sharingan from an unknown force, the Blood Dragon Eye belonging to Kirigakure is far more reliable in terms of both timing and motive."

"You truly deserve to be called the pride of my Uchiha clan... It was definitely the right thing to do to elect you as the Fourth Hokage."

"Yes, with this investigation report out, given your strength, Fugaku, and your status as Hiruzen Sarutobi's disciple, it's practically a sure thing that you've secured the Fourth Hokage position!"

However, amidst the praise, some people present also raised different opinions.

"But... since the killer has hypnotic eyes, what if someone tries to shift the blame onto us, claiming it's Sharingan?"

"No, unless Shimura Danzo and Sarutobi Hiruzen have lost their minds, they wouldn't directly target our clan..."

"After all, it's Konoha that can't do without the Uchiha now, not the other way around!"

Fugaku Uchiha's powerful words won unanimous praise from everyone present, especially his last sentence, which perfectly suited the proud nature of this group of Uchiha and filled everyone present with confidence that Fugaku Uchiha would become the Fourth Hokage.

-

"What? A kaleidoscope?"

The following day, when Shimura Danzo raised the kaleidoscope in the glass tube high in front of all the Jonin, the audience erupted in uproar.

Especially Homura Uchiha and Fugaku Uchiha, if they hadn't remembered that this was a Jonin class meeting, they probably would have rushed forward to snatch the Mangekyou Sharingan back immediately.

Since that's the case, the two of them looked at the kaleidoscope with burning passion, because it wasn't just about combat strength, but also about the face of the Uchiha clan.

Given that no Mangekyou Sharingan has appeared in the Uchiha clan for decades, the significance of these eyes to the Uchiha clan is self-evident.

Danzo Shimura glanced at the two of them, then repeated the origin of the kaleidoscope in front of everyone.

When it was learned that the original owner of the kaleidoscope was actually the son of Uchiha Madara, the "Shura of the Ninja World" and Hashirama Senju's lifelong enemy, the scene descended into chaos.

Even though everyone present was a Jonin, they couldn't accept this wild "fact" for a moment.

After all, that's Madara Uchiha!

That "battlefield rose" actually had a casual affair with someone, which led to the birth of a Mangekyou Uchiha who was not recorded in the Uchiha roster.

Everyone else was like that, and Uchiha Homura and Uchiha Fugaku had expressions of pure schadenfreude when they heard this anecdote.

Did something go wrong?

Even that cold-faced Asura could have fallen in love?

They were about to stand up and refute, but faced with the undeniable fact of the Mangekyou Sharingan in Shimura Danzo's hands, they couldn't come up with any reason to refute it.

Compared to this explosive fact, Danzo Shimura's investigation report was largely ignored.

In fact, the election for Hokage was already over when Shimura Danzo took out the kaleidoscope that was floating in the glass bottle in front of everyone.

Regardless of the authenticity of Shimura Danzo's investigation report, the key point is that it is a kaleidoscope right in front of us!

Based on this point alone, there is no objection to Shimura Danzo being elected the Fourth Hokage.

"Although this is a trophy captured by my men, because it involves Uchiha Madara, a former rogue ninja of Konoha, I have decided to make the research on this Mangekyou Sharingan public, with Orochimaru leading the research and sharing the results with the village."

If there were real-time support rate statistics for Shimura Danzo and Uchiha Fugaku at the scene, Shimura Danzo's support rate would probably skyrocket after this statement.

Although those present could not learn anything from this type of bloodline limit, even if they researched it, Danzo Shimura's attitude of sharing the secrets of the Kaleidoscope with them was unanimously appreciated.

I may not need it, I may not use it, but you can't refuse to give it to me!

Faced with this situation, even Uchiha Homura and Uchiha Fugaku knew that the situation was hopeless.

In this situation, let alone competing with Danzo Shimura for the Hokage position, they wouldn't even have a reason to take out their Mangekyou Sharingan.

What? You're saying the Mangekyou Sharingan belongs to your Uchiha clan? Where's the proof?

Moreover, this is crucial evidence used to frame the Third Hokage. You say it belongs to your clan, does that mean you were aware of this matter?

Although the Uchiha clan is full of brutes, those who can become the clan leader are ultimately able to understand this, so they can only watch helplessly as Shimura Danzo uses the symbol of his clan's power to step on them and ascend to the position of Hokage.

-

In the dimly lit staircase, Danzo Shimura walked alone, climbing the stairs ever upward.

"Twenty years have passed, teacher, have you seen it?"

Danzo Shimura thought of that forest twenty years ago.

The environment back then seemed to be the same as it is now, dark and gloomy.

Only the teacher's voice asking who wanted to stay, along with the sound of footsteps going upstairs, echoed continuously throughout the space.

However, unlike him now, he hesitated back then and did not bravely move forward, which caused him to miss out on the position of Hokage.

And this retreat lasted for twenty years.

As Shimura Danzo looked at the bright exit above, his mind kept replaying the events of the past twenty years.

For the past twenty years, he has been buried deep underground, working tirelessly and relentlessly to climb upwards step by step. What was he doing all this for?

Is it for the ideal in one's heart?

Is it dissatisfaction with Hiruzen Sarutobi?

Or is he trying to prove himself to his teacher?

Danzo Shimura was completely baffled.

But it doesn't matter, he has at least figured out one thing now.

Danzo Shimura finally emerged from the dimly lit staircase and stood in the sunlight, where the striking Hokage Rock came into view.

The statue of Tobirama Senju, the Second Hokage, is gazing intently at him.

A fierce wind howled, blowing the red and white Hokage robes on his back.

The five large characters "Fourth Hokage" shone brightly under the sunlight.

He spread his arms and walked to the edge of the rooftop of the Hokage Building, responding to the cheers of the dense crowd below.

"I am now... the Fourth Hokage, Shimura Danzo!"

(End of this chapter)